The Chargé d'Affaires of the Republic of Iraq in Ukraine Is Visiting Vinnytsia for the First Time on a Working Visit

Vinnytsia became the second city after Odesa that the Chargé d'Affaires of the Republic of Iraq in Ukraine, Minister Plenipotentiary Tarek Adil Kazem, visited outside the capital. This is his first visit to our community, where he arrived together with Olha Maznichenko, a representative of the Embassy of the Republic of Iraq in Ukraine. The visit began with a meeting with Mayor Serhii Morhunov. The parties discussed opportunities for cooperation and exchange of experience in the implementation of important investment projects. They also discussed the prospects for establishing sister city relations between the cities.

Tarek Adil Kazem emphasised that he considers this meeting to be extremely important for bilateral cooperation between Ukraine and Iraq. He also noted that his homeland is well aware of the suffering and destruction that war brings to people. The country is still undergoing reconstruction, so there is great interest in establishing partnerships and jointly implementing mutually beneficial projects.

'First of all, I want to tell you that Baghdad, like other Iraqi cities, is currently developing and undergoing active reconstruction. Great progress is being made in infrastructure reconstruction, housing development, and business. Therefore, we are interested in exchanging and utilising experience. We hope to establish cooperation and partnership and brotherly relations between cities,' said the Chargé d'Affaires of the Republic of Iraq in Ukraine.

In turn, Vinnytsia Mayor Serhii Morhunov outlined the economic, infrastructural, security and humanitarian potential of the community during a brief presentation. He emphasised the challenges facing the community today, including in the context of hostile attacks on civilian infrastructure, one of which took place recently, on 16 July. He stressed the importance of establishing horizontal partnerships to strengthen international dialogue.

'Today, it is necessary to understand where cooperation between Iraq and Vinnytsia can be established, in which areas, and which city in Iraq is potentially interested in cooperating with us. But here it is important not just to sign an agreement and exchange delegations, but to build horizontal ties,' said the head of the community.

During the meeting, the parties discussed promising areas for such partnership. In particular, Iraq has a significant need for renewable energy sources. Solar panels manufactured in Vinnytsia could be useful here. In addition, they see great potential for cooperation in agriculture, the economy, education, exchange of experience and cultural delegations. There is also potential for joint participation by our communities in international conferences on urban reconstruction.

'International cooperation is an important component of our community's development, so we are interested in joint projects and attracting foreign investment. I am grateful to the representatives of the Republic of Iraq for their openness, willingness to engage in dialogue and cooperation,' said Vinnytsia Mayor Serhii Morhunov.